Box Score SWARTHMORE, Pa. – A career-high 34 points for Alexa Barbush paced a late second-half rally for Franklin & Marshall however the Diplomats fell short against Swarthmore 74-68 on Saturday afternoon in Centennial Conference (CC) action. F&M dropped to 7-16, 4-14 CC in its final road contest of the season, as the Garnet improved to 18-5, 14-4 CC.
Barbush scored 21 points in the second-half on 9-of-16 shooting to go along with four assists as the Diplomats turned a 14-point deficit with 12:08 remaining into a three-point game at 66-63 with 2:46 left.
Swarthmore pushed the lead to six after a pair of free-throws to make the score 70-64 with 1:29 to go. Colleen Bott answered by landing a jumper on the Diplomats next possession to cut the deficit to four with 44 seconds remaining.
On the other end of the court, Elizabeth Snyder picked up her sixth steal of the afternoon and the teams 14th of the contest. The senior guard crashed the lane on the ensuing possession, picking up the foul. At the line she drained both attempts to make it a two-point game at 70-68 with 16 ticks left on the clock.
However, the Garnet went 4-for-4 from the charity stripe in the closing seconds to stretch the lead to six en route to the 74-68 final.
In addition to picking up a career-high in points, Barbush added six rebounds, five assists and four steals on the day. Snyder finished in double-digits with 14 while tacking on six boards.
Both teams shot well from the floor with an identical 41 percent clip. However, the Garnet landed 18-of-20 attempts from the free-throw line, which was good for 90 percent shooting, while the Diplomats went 11-of-17 for a 64 percent effort.
F&M forced 16 turnovers and only committed 10 of its own. The Diplomats turned those Swarthmore miscues into 21 points, including 14 in the second-half.
Three Swarthmore players reached double-figures in scoring, led by 20 from Elle Larson. Katie Lytle finished with 16 points and pulled in a game-high 17 rebounds.
F&M returns home on Wednesday to face off against Johns Hopkins. Tip-off is set for 6:00 p.m.
SWARTHMORE 74, FRANKLIN & MARSHALL 68
FRANKLIN & MARSHALL (7-15, 4-14)
Alexa Barbush 14-29 6-9 34; Elizabeth Snyder 5-11 3-4 14; Colleen Bott 3-7 2-4 8; Emma Lisle 4-9 0-0 8; Kara Bacile 2-3 0-0 4; Sam Plunkett 0-2 0-0 0; Emily Wetz 0-0 0-0 0; Tracy Hahn 0-4 0-0 0; Kristina McCarthy 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 28-68 11-17 68.
SWARTHMORE (18-5, 14-4)
Elle Larsen 5-12 10-12 20; Katie Lytle 7-14 2-2 16; Madeline Ross 3-8 4-4 10; Jessica Jowdy 3-9 2-2 9; Eliza Polli 2-9 0-0 6; Elizabeth Casey 2-3 0-0 4; Kayla Moritzky 2-6 0-0 4; Abbey Deckard 1-1 0-0 3; Isabella Bellezza 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 26-63 18-20 74.
Franklin & Marshall........... 28 40 - 68
Swarthmore.................... 35 39 - 74
3-point goals--Franklin & Marshall 1-4 (Elizabeth Snyder 1-4), Swarthmore 4-17 (Eliza Polli 2-8; Jessica Jowdy 1-5; Abbey Deckard 1-1; Kayla Moritzky 0-2; Madeline Ross 0-1).
Fouled out--Franklin & Marshall-Kristina McCarthy, Swarthmore-None.
Rebounds--Franklin & Marshall 35 (Alexa Barbush 6; Elizabeth Snyder 6), Swarthmore 47 (Katie Lytle 17).
Assists--Franklin & Marshall 14 (Alexa Barbush 5), Swarthmore 12 (Madeline Ross 3).
Total fouls--Franklin & Marshall 18, Swarthmore 17.
Technical fouls--Franklin & Marshall-None, Swarthmore-None.
